


By Her Side

by PurpleArrowzandLeather



Series: Kings and Queens of Hearts [8]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Akaiya is a tiny saint, F/M, Fluff, Protective Cayde-6, Sick Hawthorne, Sickfic, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-10-04 21:36:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17312282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PurpleArrowzandLeather/pseuds/PurpleArrowzandLeather
Summary: Suraya gets sick and Cayde makes it his mission to help her get better.





	By Her Side

**Author's Note:**

> Just a cute little fic that I found to be pleasing. :) Hope you guys like it!  
> And once again, I own nothing aside form my original characters, blah, blah. Have fun!

          Cayde wanders into his quarters, humming lightly to himself. He’s in a relatively good mood and his daughter skips out to meet him.  

          He hefts Akaiya up with an exaggerated groan. “Heya, sweetheart! How was your day?” 

          “Good. I helped Momma put roses on the trellie-thingy.” 

          “The trellis?”  

          “Uh huh!” 

          Cayde chuckles. “Roses, huh? Where’d the artichokes go?” 

          “They’re in the window. Momma said they’d like the sunlight there.” 

          Cayde presses a kiss to Akaiya’s forehead. “I’m sure they will, honey. Where’s your mom?” 

          “She’s in the kitchen.” 

          He meanders in that direction, letting Akaiya down when she pushes at him. She heads directly for the window where Cayde spots the artichokes in full bloom. She talks to them while she waters them and Cayde chuckles lowly. He pokes his head into the kitchen where Hawthorne has food going and she looks up from where she’s cutting carrots.  

          “Hey, Cayde. Did you have a good day?” 

          “It was good enough. You?” 

          She smiles, but it’s a little weaker than usual. “It was fine. Planted some flowers.” 

          “That’s what Akaiya said.” Cayde answers, coming up behind her and resting his chin on her shoulder while she continues to work. “You sure you’re okay?” 

          She takes a deep breath, moving on to the peppers. “It’s nothing I can't handle. Just a headache.” 

          “All day?” 

          She nods. 

          “Well, how about you go sit down, and I’ll handle this. All right?” 

          She laughs. “Cayde, when was the last time you cooked anything other than ramen noodles?” 

          Cayde takes her hand from behind, sliding the knife away and setting it on the table before he swoops her up. “Does that really matter?” 

          “If I plan to survive eating my next meal, it might.” She huffs, leaning into him anyway. 

          “Have a little adventure, okay? I promise you won’t die from me cooking dinner just this once.” He carries her from the kitchen and places her carefully in her favorite rocking chair. Akaiya climbs up into her lap and Suraya hugs her, laughing as Akaiya plays with her small animal toys.  

          She looks up at Cayde. “All right. Just this once, I suppose.” 

          Cayde bows. “Your wish is my command.” 

          She laughs, kicking at his ankles to get him moving since Akaiya is still on her lap. Cayde hops back a couple steps and retreats to the kitchen to finish cooking. He makes sure to actually read the instructions so that he doesn’t make anyone sick. He has the sinking suspicion that Hawthorne already is. Akaiya is lucky to be a Guardian at this point, getting sick being a lot more difficult when the Traveler is at the wheel. 

          Suraya is quiet throughout dinner, smiling at Akaiya as she chatters excitedly about every little thing she did throughout the day. Traveler, he loves her.   

          Still, it isn’t long before he settles her down to sleep and carries Hawthorne back to their bedroom. She doesn’t protest, which immediately leads Cayde to the assumption that she feels worse than she lets on. He remembers when Amanda had gotten sick about two hundred years ago, and it was bad. She may be the oldest human in the Tower, but she doesn’t show it a day in her life. Cayde sometimes wonders why. She isn’t an Awoken by any means. The Traveler did lengthen human life by quite a stretch, though.

          It doesn’t matter. What matters to him at the moment is Hawthorne.  

          She falls asleep in his arms and he watches over her the whole night, just listening to her breathe. She gets stuffy around midnight and Cayde lets go, only moving away for a short second to snag the blanket from the end of the bed. Suraya makes a soft noise at the loss of his warmth and he lies back down, tugging her closer.  

          By morning, she has a fever. Cayde starts getting worried when she doesn’t wake up to Colonel’s early morning clucking from the small coop out in the garden area. She only groans and snuggles closer to him. He presses a careful Exo’s kiss to her forehead before getting up. Akaiya skips out of her bedroom, already fully dressed with Shiro’s old cloak on her shoulders.  

          “Morning, daddy. Where’s Momma?” 

          “She’s a little under the weather, kiddo. Let’s make her breakfast, okay?” 

          Akaiya nods, bouncing into Cayde’s arms when he opens them to her. Together, they make her some potato soup. Hopefully, that’ll be easy enough on her stomach. Cayde lets Akaiya organize a tray with a napkin and a couple of crackers with fruit. Cayde places the soup on it carefully with a spoon already in it.  

          He’s pleased to find that Suraya is waking up when he enters. She presses a hand to her forehead, sniffing. Rubbing her eyes a little, she blearily spots them coming towards her.  

          “Cayde? What are you doing?” 

          “Hate to tell you this, Whiskey, but you’re sick.” 

          She pushes herself up against the headboard and sighs. “Yep. Sure feels like it.” 

          They hand her the tray and Suraya eats carefully. Cayde steps out for a moment, looking at the clock on his wall and heading outside for a short minute to feed the Colonel. He retreats to their room when he hears Hawthorne coughing. Akaiya doesn’t seem worried at all, and Cayde figures she should stay that way. Maybe Uldren and Kayleigh could take her for a little while. Or maybe Amanda. 

          He decides on Uldren and Kayleigh, since those two are less busy. He makes sure Hawthorne is all settled before walking her down the stairs. He knocks twice on Kayleigh’s door, fully expecting her to look haggard like she usually does in the morning.  

          She opens the door, her eyes already bright and her hair as calm as it ever gets. Instead, it’s Uldren who is still half-asleep, sitting on a barstool at the island with his head pressed against the cool of the tabletop. Cayde finds himself amused by the image. For once, Uldren isn’t the one that’s perfectly put-together. Ever since they got hitched, it’s like Kayleigh’s bad morning habits are becoming his, and his are becoming hers.  

          Must be that Awoken tattoo. It starts at their ring fingers and travels up their arms in a spiral as two strands, the ends shaped as crows in flight. Cayde still thinks that stuff is insane. It bonds them, somehow. 

          “Morning, Cayde. What’s up?” 

          “Hawthorne is sick and I was wondering if you two could take care of Akaiya for a little while. I know it’s unlikely she’ll get sick, but...” he looks down at her and her brown eyes meet his. “I don’t need her to worry.” he says lowly. 

          Kayleigh nods. “Of course. Come on, tater-tot.” 

          Akaiya giggles at the name and Kayleigh leads her inside. Uldren runs a hand through his hair to fix it before turning around and greeting the little girl. Kayleigh talks to Cayde in the doorway for a little while as Uldren picks the girl up. He’s a sucker for Akaiya’s doe eyes, but Cayde would be lying if he said he wasn’t, too. Uldren offers her breakfast cereal as Kayleigh and Cayde sort out what the plan is.  

           Kayleigh sees him off with a hug and he heads back up to the main level of the Tower. He strides up to Zavala’s station and the Titan turns.  

          “Cayde-6. What brings you up here so early? I’d say by your standards that you’re attempting to pull wool over my eyes.” 

          “I’m not staying.” 

          “Oh?” 

          Cayde nods. “Hawthorne is sick, and I’m taking care of her. Unless the world is ending, don’t call me.” 

          Zavala smiles. “Of course, Cayde. I wouldn’t dare keep you from taking care of your family.” 

          Cayde gives him a long look, his metal brow lowering. “Thanks, I suppose.” 

          Zavala bobs his head and Cayde wanders away, talking to Banshee before he heads back to his quarters.  

          Banshee seems to have forgotten that Cayde wasn’t dead, but he recovers, shaking his head. “No, no. That can’t be right. Akaiya was eating ramen a week ago, and you were dangling it above her. Yeah, that’s right. Good to see you, Cayde.” 

          Cayde only laughs. As stressful as it can be to remind him, he sometimes wonders what it would be like to not remember. It never seems as appealing as Banshee tries to make reboots sound.  

          Still, he’s a busy Exo, and early morning Guardians are already moving about. Cayde hops over the railing and jumps once three floors down to land on the proper floor. He walks down cobblestone streets, humming to himself. He tosses his gun up, watching it spin before he catches it. Looking around, he starts aiming at flowerpots, not shooting any bullets, but spinning around to “take them out” nonetheless.  

          He arrives at his quarters, but it takes about fifteen minutes longer than he had initially intended.  

          Hawthorne is asleep and Cayde settles on the edge of the bed. She hums, turning towards him a little without waking. Cayde leans forward, moving her dark hair away from her face. It’s so dark that it’s nearly black, but the sun shining on it through the window turns it a fiery chestnut color. She presses closer so that he’s cupping her cheek and he smiles. He snags her poncho from the chair nearby and drapes it over her.  

          Touching her forehead again, Cayde reads her temperature. It’s still high. He gets up, moving into the bathroom to wet a washrag for her. Cayde waits until afternoon to wake her, keeping her upright just long enough to put some food in her. It’s a little more soup, which is about the only thing he can safely make. Suraya wasn’t exactly wrong about him not being able to cook. But, like every other Guardian, he has a very convenient and knowledgeable Ghost. 

          She laughs a little as he reminds her of that very fact when she complains about eating the same thing again.  

          Okay, the  _plan_  was to let her sleep more, but she insists on being awake for a little longer. He reads her some poetry from the old-age book that she had borrowed from Ikora. Cayde closes it with a quiet snap and freely recites the last poem he read in some old lore book to her. 

          Hawthorne chuckles. “I had no idea you read in your free time. I mean, you read books, but-“ 

          Cayde huffs. “Yes, I’ve read a poem. Try not to faint.”  

          She laughs lightly, coughing a little bit. Cayde rubs her back, helping her lean back to sleep. He soothes her, lying down next to her upon her request. After she’s comfortable again, Cayde pulls himself upright, settling against the headboard and just keeping her company.  

          Cayde reads to her more even though she’s asleep, but it’s not as if his voice box will give out.

          Out of habit, he carefully runs his thumb over his throat where Ghaul had cut it open. He doesn't think about it all that much anymore, but there are days.

          Hawthorne curls as close to him as she can, her breathing a little raspy. Cayde tugs her poncho a little higher over her shoulders, quieting her. She relaxes. 

          Wash hovers just over her chest, blue eye looking up at Cayde. “We should probably find her some medicine.” 

          Cayde shakes his head, lowering his voice to ensure he doesn’t wake her. “If you want to, you can, but I ain’t leavin’.” 

          About an hour after Wash returns with medicine, Kayleigh and Uldren drop by with Akaiya. Uldren sits in the chair next to the bed, Akaiya propped up on his knee. Kayleigh stands just behind him, her hands resting on either side of his neck.  

          “How is she?” 

          Cayde hesitates to answer in front of Akaiya. She’s a smart little girl, and he doesn’t want her to worry. Kayleigh catches on first, swooping her up with a laugh and heading out to play with her Fallen toys. Uldren stays behind, staring pensively at Hawthorne’s still form.  

          “So?” 

          “She’s getting worse. Headaches, fever, coughing. Wash and I gave her medicine, but I’m worried that it won’t do much. The efficacy of medicine went down a lot after the Collapse.” 

          Uldren hums, looking up at Cayde. “Getting sick is part of being human, Cayde. Even the Reefborn get sick, and this looks nothing like that.” 

          “Oh yeah? What does a Reefborn getting sick look like?” 

          “Worse. The last time I was sick...” Uldren sighs, slouching back in the chair a little. “I think Mara thought I was going to die.” 

          “How’d you get better?” 

          “Time. And Mara’s healing abilities. My crows were left without a master, as I was bedridden for weeks.” 

          Cayde chuckles. “I’m trying to imagine you being bedridden, but I’m not getting a good picture.” 

          “I guarantee that it was less fun that it sounds.” 

          “I’ll bet.” 

          Uldren sucks in a deep breath, leaning forwards to hold one of Hawthorne’s hands in his own. Cayde understands. Suraya is nothing if not motherly, and she did everything she could to help Uldren feel welcome when he first came to the Tower. Between Cayde, Hawthorne and Kayleigh, Uldren was well-looked after. 

          Uldren places a careful hand on her forehead, closing his eyes. “She dreams.” 

          “About?” 

          “What could have happened if... if she never punched the New Monarchy faction leader in the face.” Uldren’s golden gaze stares up at Cayde, amusement clearly written out in his following chuckle. 

          Cayde laughs a little. “Yeah, I remember that. She left shortly after.” 

          “I’m sure New Monarchy remembers as well.” 

          “I didn’t disagree with her, but... well, I was overruled.” 

          Uldren hums, pulling back. “It was for the best. She’s already dismissed the idea for dreams about her current life instead.” 

          Cayde smiles, his hand moving across her hair again. “Good. I don’t know where I’d be without her around.” 

          Hawthorne hums, turning a bit. “Hopelessly lost.”  

          Uldren gives her hand a small squeeze. “How are you feeling?” 

          “I’ve had worse.” 

          Cayde huffs. “That’s my Whiskey, all right.” 

          “Don’t you ever forget it.” 

          “Never.” 

          Uldren stands, straightening his cloak. “I’ll get Akaiya, so she can say hello before we go. And, Cayde? For the record, I believe you’re being a little overprotective of her.” 

          “Probably. We’ll see what she thinks.” 

          Hawthorne turns onto her side, propping herself up on an elbow as Uldren leaves. “He’s not wrong.” 

          Cayde leans to press a kiss to her forehead again. “Sue me.” 

          “Don’t test me.” 

          The door opens again and Akaiya scampers up onto the bed. “Hi, momma. Are you feeling any better now?” 

          “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I feel just perfect now that you’re here.” 

          Akaiya giggles, crawling up in between them and lying down. “Feeling shiny?” 

          “Yes, honey. Shiny.” 

          Cayde places a light hand on her wild brown curls. “What do you think, sweetheart? Want to stay with us or go back with Uldren and Kayleigh?” 

          “I’ll stay.” 

          Cayde nods, letting her up so she can go inform them. She’s back within a few seconds, hopping up onto the bed and crawling back to her spot. Kayleigh shouts her goodbye from the front door. Hawthorne wraps Akaiya up in part of her blanket and sighs.  _Now it's time for a little peace and quiet._

          They go about their business for the next couple of days, Akaiya helping him make food for Suraya in her waking moments and curling up between them afterwards. Even though Hawthorne is sick, the three of them find that they’re enjoying their days together.  

          Calling in sick on the third day is testing Zavala’s resolve, but he reluctantly agrees. For Cayde, there is nothing he would rather be doing, and nothing in the ‘verse can stop him.  

**Author's Note:**

> Such warm fuzzies. I love them.


End file.
